Head of Software

Overview

We are seeking a highly skilled and experienced Head of Software to join our team at C4ADS. This role is not just about managing software personnel and ensuring successful project delivery; it's about being deeply aligned with and excited about our mission to advance global security and stability through data-driven analysis and innovative technology. The ideal candidate will bring a strong background in software development, project management, and team leadership, all while sharing our passion for making a meaningful impact in the world.

What You'll Do

Team Management

• Manage all software program team personnel, including software engineers and product designers, ensuring they are responsive to stakeholders, meeting their milestones, and following software development SOPs.
• Supervise team output, providing mentorship through regular code reviews and design crits.

Project Planning

• Lead planning for new software projects through coordination with project and product managers.
• Advise on expectations, time, resource, and cost estimates for each project proposal involving software.

Technical Architecture

• Work closely with the relevant engineering staff to design the technical architecture for each project.
• Work with engineering staff to manage the organization’s cloud infrastructure.

Project Tracking

• Track all software projects to ensure that timelines are met and any issues are communicated to stakeholders as early as possible.
• Provide periodic updates to leadership and the broader organization about new products and features produced by the software team.

Labor and Budget Management

• Advise on labor requirements and hiring needs for new software engineering positions.
• Advise on labor requirements and budget for software components within new project proposals.
• Manage budgets for consultant labor required to successfully reach deliverables and milestones.

Software Development Standards

• Establish and maintain software development standards and processes, including:
  • Recommended application architecture for software platforms and products, including standardized templates for deployment and orchestration.
  • Expectations around tools used to track, monitor, and maintain code.
  • Software project management and sprint processes.
  • Code review, styling, and testing standards.
  • Software consultant hiring and management guidelines.
  • Shared infrastructure, including CI/CD authentication, cloud services, and product analytics.

Infrastructure Audits

• Conduct quarterly audits for security, redundancy, functionality, and cost of cloud compute infrastructure, including:
  • Disaster recovery scenarios for data, code, and infrastructure.
  • Security credentials for cloud infrastructure.
  • Financial costs of cloud infrastructure.

Product Success

• Coordinate with the product and project managers to track and improve software product success, e.g., by monitoring user engagement, revenue, and costs.
• Work alongside the product manager and product designer to generate user feedback on existing products and to test upcoming features or products.
• Work with the product manager to capture comprehensive usage analytics on all software products.
• Work with the product manager to derive meaningful insights from captured analytics and use these to inform future product decisions.

Career Development

• Ensure that Software Engineers and Product Designers have defined growth areas and career tracks, in coordination with the Senior Director of Operations and the Chief of People.
• Maintain the hiring process for incoming software engineers, product managers, and product designers.

Intern Program

• Establish and maintain the intern program for Software Engineers at C4ADS.

Other Duties

• Perform other duties as assigned.

What we're looking for

Required

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or a related field.
• Extensive experience in software development and project management.
• Experience taking projects from a concept to a finished product.
• Experience with SQL databases like Postgres.
• Strong leadership and management skills.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• Proficiency in software development methodologies.
• Experience with cloud compute infrastructure and security best practices.
• Strong problem-solving and decision-making skills.
• Ability to manage multiple projects and priorities effectively.
• Commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.
• Passion for fostering a positive and collaborative work environment.
• A deep excitement and alignment with C4ADS's mission to advance global security and stability through data-driven analysis and innovative technology.

Bonus Points For

• Experience with AWS.
• Experience with OpenSearch or ElasticSearch.
• Experience with languages and frameworks like Python, Typescript, Django, Celery, and React.
• Experience with NoSQL databases like Redis.
• Experience administering containerized infrastructure through services like Docker and Kubernetes.

How We'll Reward You

• $140,000 salary
• Fully covered Medical, Dental, and Vision Insurance for employees and covered dependents.
• Unlimited vacation time, with a required minimum of 10 days per year.
• 401(k) program with 4% matching for both traditional and Roth options.
• A $4,500 education stipend for continuing growth.
• 12 weeks of paid parental leave for the birth, adoption, or placement of a foster child.
• Life & disability insurance fully covered.
• Access to a pre-tax, flexible spending account (FSA).
• SmartBenefits for pre-tax deposits on SmartTrip cards.
• A passionate team that values hard work and is serious about building and maintaining a great culture.

Join us at C4ADS and be part of a mission that truly makes a difference in the world.

Apply through our website: https://c4ads.org/careers/?gh_jid=6507933003